Snorkeling trip to Galapagos: Sony FDR-X3000 or Olympus TG5/6?

I will go on a trip to Galapagos in about a month. For land needs I will have a Fuji X-T3 and a couple of lenses (TBD). But I am a newbie on all underwater matters: both photography and  snorkeling.   I have a Sony FDR-X3000 with its OEM UW enclosure that I used on a previous snorkeling trip (Red Sea)  and some other "adventures"  to get some snapshot videos, but I am more keen on stills for which IMHO X3000 does not have enough controls.   So my questions is: should I

(a) Keep the Sony: the wide angle and the stabilization will ensure that I capture what I see and the IQ advantages  of the Oly will be wasted on a newbie like me.  Plus is not too hard to get single frames out of the video.

or

(b) Borrow, rent,  or buy the Oly: the IQ and controls are vastly superior and even a  newbie will get much better photos.

Any other insight into the pluses and minuses of these solution, or anything I should know/prepare pre-trip much appreciated.

Many thanks, -- Red

Why not house your X-T3? SeaFrogs has a fairly affordable option at $655 with dome, plus $120 for a vacuum system.

Redivivus wrote:

... I have a Sony FDR-X3000 with its OEM UW enclosure that I used on a previous snorkeling trip (Red Sea) and some other "adventures" to get some snapshot videos, but I am more keen on stills for which IMHO X3000 does not have enough controls. So my questions is: should I

(a) Keep the Sony: the wide angle and the stabilization will ensure that I capture what I see and the IQ advantages of the Oly will be wasted on a newbie like me. Plus is not too hard to get single frames out of the video.

or

(b) Borrow, rent, or buy the Oly: the IQ and controls are vastly superior and even a newbie will get much better photos.

Any other insight into the pluses and minuses of these solution, or anything I should know/prepare pre-trip much appreciated.

Many thanks, -- Red

I'm not familiar with either of your choices, but IF the IQ difference is significant, it would probably not be wasted. For example, it might be more important to a beginner who isn't necessarily thinking about composition than to a veteran because if the resolution is significantly higher, you might have more latitude to crop and still produce a decent image. If the DR is greater the IQ will be better and if your image is over- or under-exposed, you may be able to correct it with less loss of quality.

OTOH, if the stills you grab from the Sony video are good enough in your opinion, why spend hundreds on another camera?

Using what you have, if you are happy with the results, is always a good idea. However, if UW still photography is something you enjoy and will have more opportunities to do in the future, maybe investing in a housing and lights for your Fuji would be the best solution.  Can you rent a housing for your Fuji?  Can you rent an Olympus?

The Olympus looks like a nice little camera and may just have enough advantages in features and usability compared to your Sony to be worth it to you.  However, it seems like a compromise for UW photography.  You need to do the research to see what the consensus is about its performance for the way you want to use it.

If you aren't going to have some dives in before your trip to learn how to use the gear, I would NOT get anything like a dive housing for a big camera with strobes. Keep it small and simple.  You don't want to be trying to learn anything about a camera in a place like that, which as has been said in this thread is a challenging place to dive, and snorkeling is generally more work than diving.

Perhaps this $299 housing for a smart phone?

http://www.krakensports.ca/Smart-Housing.php

I went to Galapagos last summer, I'd suggest using the Sony you have.  The visibility is not great in most places (I dove, maybe snorkelling is better) so you're going to want as wide as you can get so you can get closer to the subject.  You could always film in 4k and grab screen shots while you're reviewing the footage, then you could have video and stills.